Vidas Robadas/Stolen Lives Art Installation for Gun Violence Awareness
Feb. 23, 2025 – St. David’s Episcopal Church of Austin unveiled its participation with Texas Impact’s "Vidas Robadas/Stolen Lives" campaign.
Vidas Rodadas is an outdoor art installation of T-shirts commemorating the lives of Texans lost to gun violence and calling for public policies that promote sensible gun safety.
All are invited to an Installation Blessing on Wednesday, Feb. 26, at 6 p.m.
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health | Center for Gun Violence Solutions Based on most recent available finalized data from CDC (2022)
Parishioners worked with local artist Alicia Philley to create our own cutting-edge version of Vida Robadas that is unique to downtown Austin. We seek to make our actions a form of public prayer for victims of gun violence and a call for people of faith and conscience to unite to find reasonable solutions for gun safety.
St. David's Episcopal Church Launches Art Installation to Honor Gun Violence Victims, CBS Austin
Published: Sun, Feb. 23, 2025
Downtown Austin Art Installation Honors Victims of Gun Violence, KVUE ABC
Published: Feb. 23, 2025
Texas church’s art installation remembers lives lost to gun violence, Episcopal News Service
Published: March 3, 2025
Contact Director of Community Engagement and Advocacy Dianne Hardy-Garcia at for more information or to get involved.
Vidas Robadas (Stolen Lives) is a Texas Impact project focused on addressing gun violence. Through memorializing victims of gun violence, Vidas Robadas localizes and makes visible the reality of gun violence for communities across our state.
Join advocates from across Texas at the Texas Capitol. The event will take place on Thursday, Feb. 27, at the Texas Capitol, with a rally followed by lunch and meetings with lawmakers. Sign up to receive updates, details, and more information.
Update, March 3, 2025
Members of St. David's attended the Gun Violence Awareness Day at the Texas Capitol.
Gun Violence Awareness Day at the Texas Capitol
I’ve been visualizing prayer flags and water currents. In honoring those lost to gun violence, I imagine them in this flow of birth, life, death, and beyond. They are not completely lost because we mourn them and fight for change on their behalf.
Artist Alicia Philley has lived and worked in Austin for 15 years. She said this about the creative process for the St. David’s installation:
“In arranging the shirts, I’ve been visualizing prayer flags and water currents. Prayer flags symbolize peace, compassion, and wisdom. Stringing together these T-shirts and hanging them for all to see, we share blessings to the families who have lost loved ones, share blessings to the advocates who call for reasonable gun safety laws, and share blessings to the legislators who have the power to act with compassion."
She continues, "Water also holds many symbolic meanings, regardless of faith. It is part of rituals going back thousands of years that mark transitions from childhood to adult, single to married, life to death. Water flows, in an ongoing cycle that is both known and full of mystery. It is a reminder that every moment in life is precious and unique. In honoring those lost to gun violence, I imagine them in this flow of birth, life, death, and beyond. They are not completely lost because we mourn them and fight for change on their behalf.”
Alicia Philley was born in 1972 in Dallas, Texas. She is the founder of the Artist Parents & Caregivers Community organization and residency, a project leader for the annual San Marcos Studio Tour, and regularly volunteers with the Native Prairies Association of Texas. Philley uses the language of nature – color, reflective light, and patterns – to draw correlations between lived environment, memory, and emotional health. Her recent and upcoming projects feature partnerships with non-profit organizations that work to mitigate climate damage through research, nature preservation, and communal activities. The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center supported Philley’s 2022-23 site-specific installation of seventy vibrant sculptures along a trail in their gardens.
